Engine operating system

ABSTRACT

In the engine operating system of this invention, a venturi tube consisting of two closely opposite nozzles, the neighbouring part of such opposing ends of the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form a suction port, is arranged in the liquid cycle, and the exit of the venturi tube is connected with a gas(or air)-liquid separator, the upper end of which separator is connected to an engine member by way of a heater, while the bottom end of the separator being connected to the inlet of said venturi tube by way of a driving pump, and the suction port of the venturi tube is connected through a pipe to the open air or to the gas (or air) exit of the engine member. In the present system, it results in an advantage that the thermal efficiency of the system increases significantly.

United States Patent Hosokawa Jan. 21, 1975 ENGINE OPERATING SYSTEM [76] Inventor: Toshio Hosokawa, Midorigaoka 2-6-5-503, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan [22] Filed: Apr. 12, 1974 [21] Appl. No.: 460,455

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Apr 16, 1973 Japan ..48/42093 [52] U.S. Cl 60/689, 60/649, 60/682 [51] Int. Cl F01k 7/38 [58] Field of Search 60/649, 650, 682, 689, 60/643, 645, 685, 688

[56] References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 3,237,413 3/1966 Taubert 60/688 3,731,488 5/1973 Sasakura ..,60/688 Primary Examiner-Martin P. Schwadron Assistant ExaminerAllen M. Ostrager Attorney, Agent, or FirmMcGlew and Tuttle [57] ABSTRACT In the engine operating system of this invention, a venturi tube consisting of two closely opposite nozzles, the neighbouring part of such opposing ends of the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form a suction port, is arranged in the liquid cycle, and the exit of the venturi tube is connected with a gas(or air)-liquid separator, the upper end of which separator is connected to an engine member by way of a heater, while the bottom end of the separator being connected to the inlet of said venturi tube by way of a driving pump,

' and the suction port of the venturi tube is connected through a pipe to the open air or to the gas (or air) exit of the engine member. In the present system, it

results in an advantage that the thermal efficiency of the system increases significantly.

2 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJANZ] 1915 saw 1 or 2 FIG.1

1 ENGINE OPERATING SYSTEM The present invention relates to a new engine operating system. More particularly the invention relates to an engine operating system substituting compressed air or gas for the conventional combustion gas in the internal combustion engine or for the steam in the turbine.

The engine operating system according to the present invention comprises a venturi tube arranged in the liquid cycle, the exit of which venturi tube is connected to a separator of the liquid from conducted air or gas; an engine member to which the high-pressured air or gas separated in said separator is conducted passing through a heater; a pump which causes the liquid separated in the separator to circulate to the inlet of the venturi tube; and a pipe through which either the open air is conducted, or the exhaust air or gas from said engine member is circulated, to the suction port of the venturi tube.

An object of the invention is to provide an engine operating system reducing the fuel consumption thereof in comparison with the conventional internal combus- I engine operating system facilitating the custody thereof in comparison with the conventional systems.

Further objects of the invention will become apparent from the following explanation of the invention referring to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is the diagrammatic flowsheet showing an em bodiment of the engine operating system according to the invention.

FIG. 2 is the similar flowsheet to that of FIG. 1 but showing another embodiment.

FIG. 3 shows the enlarged side sectional view of the perforated plate which is provided with a number of small bell-mouthed holes and which is attached to the convergent end of the inlet nozzle of the venturi tube in the present system.

FIG. 4 is the graph showing a heat cycle of steam drawn on the Mollier diagram in the conventional steam turbine, in which diagram the numerals in parentheses indicate concrete values.

FIG. 5 is the graph showing a heat cycle of the circulating air or gas drawn on the Mollier diagram in the system of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is the graph showing a pressure change of the the driving pump 6. The open air or the exhaust air or gas of the engine member 5 is conducted to the suction port 1c of the venturi tube through the pipe 7.

Thus, in accordance with the engine operating system of the invention, the liquid circulates in such a way as, pump6 venturi tube 1 separator3 pump 6, whereby the pressure of the liquid in the suction port 1c of the venturi tube decreases. Accordingly, air or gas is sucked into the suction port 1c of the venturi tube through the pipe 7 and is further sent to the exit nozzle lb of the venturi tube. That is, air or gas circulates in such a way as, suction port 10 of venturi tube separator 3 heater 4 engine member 5, whereby the energy of the high-pressured air or gas is supplied for said engine member 5.

Comparing the system of the present invention with the conventional engine operatingsystem, firstly, FIG. 4 is the graph showing a heat cycle drawn on the Mollier diagram, that is, on the diagram of enthalpy (i) pressure (p) of steam in the conventional steam turbine, in which the clockwise ABCD shows the heat engine cycle. And in said heat engine cycle, the condensation of steam, i.e the heat radiation for external takes place between BC, the adiabatic expansion thereof, i.e., the work for external takes place between AB, the evaporation ther e of, i.e., the heat absorption takes place between DA and the pressurized water supply from the cqndensor into the boiler thereof takes place between CD, respectively.

Accordingly, the output in the conventional steamturbine corresponds to the work performed by the expansiqn of steam between AB, and thg ratio of the output (AB) to the fuel consumption (AD), i.e., the thermal efficiency amounts to 30-40 percent at most, though such a heat efficiency varies with the conditions of the steam pressure and the super heating thereof.

Further, in the internal combustion engine, the thermal efficiency thereof is below 30 percent, by the mechanism similar to that of the above-mentioned steam turbine.

On the contrary, in the system according to the present invention, the thermal efficiency thereof amounts to 60 percent and upward by means of adopting the venturi tube. That is, FIG. 5 is the similar graph showing a heat cycle drawn on the Mollier diagram of the circulating air or gas in the system of the present invention, in which diagram the adiabatic expansion of air pr cording to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the venturi tube 1 consists of two closely opposite nozzles, the inlet nozzle la and the exit nozzle 1b, the neighbouring part of such opposing endsof the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form the suction port 1c, and the convergent end of the inlet nozzle 1a (i.e., the right end thereof in FIG. 1) being covered with the perforated plate2 having a number of small belLmouthed holes 2a, 2a as shown in FIG. 3. The divergent end of the exit nozzle lb (i.e., the right end thereof in FIG. 1) of the venturi tube is connected to the gas (or air)-liquid separator 3, the upper end of which is connected to the engine member 5, e.g., a turbine, a reciprocating engine or a rotary engine, through the heater 4. The bottom end of the separator 3 is connected to the left end of the inlet nozzle la by way of gas, i.e., the work for external takes place between AB, the compression thereof takes place between BC and the heat absorption from the heater takes place between CA, respectively. Thus, in the system of the invention, there is no thermal leak other than said work for external itself, while in the conventional engine system the heat radiation for external takes place between BC, as shown in FIG. 4, to discharge the condensation heat wastefully, so that the thermal efficiency in the system of the present invention increases as described in the above.

FIG. 6 is a graph showing the pressure change of the circulating liquid in the venturi tube of the present system, in which: P, shows the pressure at the inlet of the venturi tube, P shows that at the suction port 1c and P shows that at the exit of the venturi tube, respectively. That is, the circulating liquid, the pressure of which has been increased to P, by the pump 6, enters the venturi tube 1, and the velocity head thereof increases at the inlet nozzle la of the venturi tube 1 to decrease the pressure thereof in the suction port 1c. At this time, the velocity head of the liquid increases more and more to decrease the pressure thereof to P in the suction port 10. Thus, the air or gas coming out of the engine member is sucked into the suction port 10, and the velocity head thereof decreases at the exit nozzle lb of the venturi tube 1, thereby the pressure of the air or gas returns to the static pressure of P followed by the entrance of the air or gas into the heater 4 so as to be heated therein. From the mechanism as described above, the power required for driving the pump 6 in the system of the invention is not in proportion to P but is in proportion to (P -P i.e., to the pressure depression of the circulating liquid. Accordingly, the driving power for the pump 6 in the present invention is markedly reduced in comparison with that of the conventional steam turbine.

The system of the invention is, in other words, characterized in that, the high-pressured air or gas having the enthalpy difference equal to the difference between the enthalpy of the steam at the boiler exit and that of the steam at the condensor inlet in the conventional system, is generated by means of using the venturi tube cycle (i.e. pump 6 venturi tube 1 separator 3 pump 1), and the engine member 5 is supplied with this high-pressured air or gas so as to operate the engine at high efficiency. The flow ratio, as well as the pressure ratio, of the sucked air or gas to the exit air or gas in the present system may be controlled by the prescription of the pressure of the pump 6.

Now, an example of the numerical values of the operation in the conventional steam power plant is as follows:

Saturated Steam pressure Enthalpy temperature Boiler exit 229C 28 kg/cm 870 kcal/kg (super heating by 407 "C) Condensor inlet 26 C 0.035 kg/cm 609 kcal/kg invention, in which the air pressure at the inlet of the turbine engine is 28.0'kg/cm similarly as that of the boiler exit in the above conventional steam power plant and the air exit of said engine is opened to the atmosphere, it is necessary that the difference between the temperature of the inlet air and that of the exit air of the engine is adjusted to the value calculated by the following equation or upward:

(870 609) kcal/kg X 6.41 kg/sec/(O.24 X 6.41

kg/sec) 1,087.5C, wherein 0.24 shows the specific heat of air and 6.41

kg/sec corresponds to the above-mentioned 23 ton/hr.

That is, the turbine in the present invention may be operated by heating the air to be sent to the engine member to increase the difference between the temperature of the air to be sent to the engine member and that of the exit air of the engine up to 1,087.5 C or upward. Accordingly, the fuel consumption in the present system is reduced to about 30 percent of that necessary for the conventional steam turbine, because the ratio of the enthalpy of the invention to that of the conventional steam turbine, i.e., the ratio of the fuel consumption in the present invention to that in the conventional steam turbine may be expressed by following equation:

Such a large value of the temperature difference as described above is, however, readily and significantly reduced by, for example, the increase of the amount of the circulating air or gas in the system of the present invention, such a reduction of the temperature difference being necessary for the industrial application of the system of the present invention.

From the above description,it may be seen that in the system of this invention any boiler water, watertreating apparatus, cooling-water apparatus or waterintroducing apparatus are not needed.

What is claimed is:

1. An engine operating system comprising: a venturi tube consisting of two closely opposite nozzles, an inlet nozzle and an exit nozzle, theneighbouring part of such opposing ends of the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form a suction port, while the convergent end of the inlet nozzle being covered with a perforated plate provided with a number of small bell-mouthed holes; a airliquid separator connected with the exit of the venturi tube, the upper end of which separator is connected to an engine member through a heater, the air exit of said engine member being opened to the atmosphere, while the bottom end of said separator being connected to the inlet nozzle of the venturi tube by way of a driving pump; and a pipe through which the suction port of the venturi tube is connected to the open air.

2. An engine operating system comprising: a venturi tube consisting of two closely opposite nozzles, an inlet nozzle and an exit nozzle, the neighbouring part of such opposing ends of the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form a suction port, while the convergent end of the inlet nozzle being covered with a perforated plate provided with a number of small bell-mouthed holes; a gas (or air)-liquid separator connected with the exit of the venturi tube, the upper end of which separator is connected to an engine member through a heater, while the bottom end of said separator being connected to the inlet nozzle of the venturi tube by way of a driving pump; and a pipe through which the suction port of the venturi tube is connected to the gas (or air) exit of the said engine member. 

1. An engine operating system comprising: a venturi tube consisting of two closely opposite nozzles, an inlet nozzle and an exit nozzle, the neighbouring part of such opposing ends of the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form a suction port, while the convergent end of the inlet nozzle being covered with a perforated plate provided with a number of small bell-mouthed holes; a air-liquid separator connected with the exit of the venturi tube, the upper end of which separator is connected to an engine member through a heater, the air exit of said engine member being opened to the atmosphere, while the bottom end of said separator being connected to the inlet nozzle of the venturi tube by way of a driving pump; and a pipe through which the suction port of the venturi tube is connected to the open air.
 2. An engine operating system comprising: a venturi tube consisting of two closely opposite nozzles, an inlet nozzle and an exit nozzle, the neighbouring part of such opposing ends of the nozzles being tightly closed so as to form a suction port, while the convergent end of the inlet nozzle being covered with a perforated plate provided with a number of small bell-mouthed holes; a gas (or air)-liquid separator connected with the exit of the venturi tube, the upper end of which separator is connected to an engine member through a heater, while the bottom end of said separator being connected to the inlet nozzle of the venturi tube by way of a driving pump; and a pipe through which the suction port of the venturi tube is connected to the gas (or air) exit of the said engine member. 